Rational design of photo- /electro-catalytic systems for the transformation of plastic wastes

The indiscriminate disposal and inadequate treatment of plastic wastes have caused severe global environmental and ecological crisis. Economically viable and energy-efficient technologies should be explored for the trans-formation of plastic wastes. Photo-/electro-catalytic technologies driven by the renewable energy under mild conditions have been widely developed to transform plastic wastes into valued chemicals and fuels. This review summarizes the recent progress on design strategies of catalytic systems for the selective cleavage of chemical bonds in plastic polymer chains. The correlation between catalyst features and catalytic performance in the plastic transformation have been systematically discussed in each section. This review highlights the advantages of plastic waste transformation via sustainable photo-/electro-catalytic technologies to create a circular economy with low carbon emissions.

Automated summary

The indiscriminate disposal and inadequate treatment of plastic wastes have led to a severe global environmental and ecological crisis. Economically viable and energy-efficient technologies, such as photo-/electro-catalytic technologies driven by renewable energy, have been developed to transform plastic wastes into valued chemicals and fuels. This review summarizes the recent progress on catalytic systems for the selective cleavage of chemical bonds in plastic polymer chains and discusses the correlation between catalyst features and catalytic performance.